


The Path Walks You This Way

by Stooksss



Category: Supernatural RPF
Genre: F/M, Louden Swain - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-09-24
Updated: 2016-09-24
Packaged: 2018-08-17 01:38:04
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,403
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8125501
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Stooksss/pseuds/Stooksss
Summary: "Music expresses that which cannot be said and on which it is impossible to be silent" - Victor HugoTheir friends brought them together, but their music created something deeper.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Lyrics of female character owned by Cory Branan  
> All other lyrics owned by Louden Swain

I hated LA so far. It was too warm, too dirty, and there were too many people. One of the only positives of moving had been meeting Emma. We became quick friends after meeting at a music festival, and I considered her to be my best friend. We did everything together, including shopping before a night out watching her friend, Michael’s, band. Whenever music was involved, I was always interested, regardless of where it was being played.

My dad had taught me how to play the guitar at a young age, and after initially looking at it as a chore, I grew to love it. All during high school, I would play at talent shows and county fairs. After graduating and then finishing college, I tried to make a career playing and singing. It took a few years of dead ends to realize that the Midwest was not the right place to do this, which is why I decided to move out west. Aside from my overall dislike of the city, my luck with my music had been great. I’d booked more shows in the first month than I had in six back home. You win some, you lose some.

Emma had been talking about her friend’s band for weeks, attempting to persuade me to go with her to see them. I wasn’t sure why she didn’t just ask instead of dropping hints, but after figuring she would keep beating around the bush, I asked if she would take me. The look of joy on her face made me burst out laughing. The smallest things made that girl happy.

She had told me that she hadn’t seen her friend in a couple of months, so she insisted going all out for their show, scheduling salon appointments for us, as well as planning for us to buy new outfits. You couldn’t tell by talking to her, as she didn’t fit the stereotype, but she was a total trust fund baby. When I was hesitant about her plans, she insisted on paying for me. I wasn’t about to turn down a free spa day and shopping, so we both ended up happy.

A banging on my door served as my alarm for the day. I forced myself out of bed and went to let Emma in. We were total opposites. Where she was the ideal morning person, I was a murderous bitch if woken before 11. She was too nice for me to kill, though.

“I brought you a black tea,” she handed me a thermos as she walked in. This is why we were friends. She knew how to deal with me. I took it and grunted a ‘thanks’. “Hurry and get dressed. We have a 10:30 appointment.” I did my best to hurry and we were out the door by 10:15. Lucky for us, the salon was just a few blocks over.

It’s safe to say that I had never been somewhere so ritzy to get my hair done. We were handed robes to change into after checking in, and glasses of champagne once changed. I gave Emma a ‘what the hell is this’ look, to which she replied with a smirk. Once seated, my stylist, Liza gave me the best consultation I’ve ever had. Instead of asking what I wanted to get done, she asked about my personality and lifestyle, as well as how much effort I wanted to put into my look every day. After answering, she asked if I trusted her judgment. I gave her a nervous thumbs-up and she began.

We were there for hours, but I was too relaxed to care. Liza gave me a shoulder massage as my hair processed the first time and then a calf and foot massage while the second step processed. I told her that if I ever made it big as a musician, I was going to pay her to come with me wherever I went. She laughed and said she would be more than happy to.

Emma and I looked at each other before looking at our own hair in the mirror. Her light brown hair was changed to a platinum blonde with tiny coral-colored lowlights throughout. It was styled into a long, messy braid and made her look like the Queen of California Girls. I gushed over it while she did the same over mine. When I finally looked at my own in the mirror, I couldn’t stop smiling.

I’d always kept my hair tame, only darkening it a shade or two deeper than my natural color. When I saw that my hair was styled with big, loose curls and faded from almost black at the root down to a light lavender, I was enamored. I would have never been brave enough to choose it, probably convincing myself that only teenagers could pull it off, but I was so happy I put my trust in Liza. I gave her a big hug while Emma paid. She tipped when she was done and we left.

We’d spent longer at the salon than expected, so we only had a couple of hours to shop. It was the end of September, so the nights were starting to chill. Emma and I kept this in mind while shopping and chose some cute outfits that would still keep us comfortable.

It was after five when we got back to my apartment. We hurried to do our makeup before dressing and getting dinner and drinks with Michael. Time was on our side because we arrived at the restaurant at the same time he was walking up to the door. I always had done well with a time crunch.

“Emma!” Michael wrapped his arms around her, happy to see his friend after their time apart.

“I’m so glad you’re back! I always miss you when you’re gone for weeks at a time.”

“It just makes it that much better when I finally come back.” He released her from their hug and turned to me. “And you must be the girl she can’t stop talking about.” He gave me my own hug and we introduced ourselves. I liked him already.

I felt like I fit into their duo perfectly. It was like I’d known them since childhood. I was able to talk with ease and our humor was complimentary. Had it not been for Michael’s phone going off, we would have completely missed the time. Michael needed to get to the venue ASAP, so we told him to head out and paid for his meal. He gave us each a kiss on the cheek and assured us that our names would be on the list to get in, as well as backstage.

One of the things I loved about Emma was her shared love of being part of the crowd during shows. There was a different energy about it that gave you such a rush. When we reached the venue, we gave our names to the doorman and were let right in. We grabbed a drink from the bar and maneuvered our way to the front of the stage, already tipsy enough from dinner to not care about pissing off the people around us. She told me a little about the band while we waited for things to get started. The lights eventually dimmed and the crowd cheered. A single man walked on stage with an acoustic guitar.

“That’s Jason. He’s really good friends Michael and the guys,” Emma said in my ear. He introduced himself while making the final adjustments to his tuning and then began to play. I was impressed by the crispness of his voice and how easy he made it seem. Emma and I swayed along to his set and cheered loudly when he finished. I would definitely be buying his albums.

Since Jason only had his acoustic, there wasn’t a need for any stage resets, so it was only a few minutes before the lights dimmed again. Emma started jumping excitedly, splashing some of her beer out of the bottle. I laughed at her enthusiasm. Then the music started and I understood. They were incredible! Choosing to start with an upbeat song, Michael and three other men played their hearts out on stage.

The fun they were having was contagious, and by the second song, it seemed like everyone in the audience was dancing and singing along if they knew the words. During introductions during the middle of the set, I learned that the guitarist’s name was Billy, the drummer’s Stephen, and the singer’s Rob. I’d seen him on tv and in movies before and was impressed to learn that he was also a great musician. Once he finished introducing the band, he told the story behind the next song they were going to play called “She Waits”. It hit close to home for me. While his dad was the one that left, my mom left my dad and me when I was in elementary school. Watching his face as he sang and listening to the lyrics, I found myself with tears in my eyes. Emma noticed and gave me a hug, as she knew about my past.

I was able to keep it together for the song and then continued to dance and have fun for the rest of the set. When they left the stage at the end, chanting from the fans began, begging for an encore. It took a couple of minutes, but they came out and played one more song called “January”.

After they were actually finished, Emma and I got another drink from the bar before making our way backstage. Since we no longer had to worry about being pushed or spilling anything, we opted for liquor over bottled beers, Emma choosing a vodka sour and me going for a whiskey and Sprite. By the time we got them, the crowd had dissipated and we were able to walk right over to the guard blocking the backstage entrance. We gave him our names and were told to go to the second door on the right. It would have been easy to figure out where they were without being told, they were talking so loudly. Emma knocked on the door before opening it.

“Emma,” multiple voices greeted. She hugged everyone and then introduced me. Everyone was kind and helped me feel less out of place. I sipped at my drink and sat on one of the couches, listening to the conversations around me. Starting conversations with new people was never a strength for me, no matter how hard I tried. Emma and I wouldn’t even be friends if she hadn’t bombarded me with questions after my set at the festival. For someone who wanted to perform for a living, I was very uncomfortable initiating anything without a guitar.

“Did you enjoy the set,” someone asked, sitting next to me on the couch. I looked over to see Rob, noticing how blue his eyes were up close.

“I did! It was my first time listening to your band. Very good. ‘She Waits’ got to me.”

“Yeah, that’s a tough one for me, even now.”

“I imagine. You don’t ever really get over something like that. Same thing happened to me, but it was my mom who left.”

“Shit, I’m sorry.” Worry washed over his face, like he’d started a conversation doomed from the start.

“No need for that, I promise. We both choose to deal with it creatively. There are worse things we could be doing.”

“Exactly. Michael had mentioned that you’re a musician. What sort of music do you play?”

“It’s a mixture of blues and alt country, if that makes sense.”

“Kind of. Play something?” He motioned to the guitars along the wall. Stage fright suddenly overcame me, which felt foreign. I never got nervous when it came to music. “You don’t have to.”

“No, I can. Can I use that Ovation?”

“Yeah, for sure.” Rob stood and brought me the guitar. Everyone in the room become quiet, aside from Emma, who was clapping excitedly. She always loved to hear me play. It was comforting to have someone cheering me on.

I began playing the opening of my song “The Corner” and lost myself in it. It was one of the first songs I’d written as an adult and it never got old to me. It was a sadder song, but had a special place in my heart. “Out on the corner of what I want, and what I tend to get, day-drinking and dreaming of you, I let the ashtray smoke my last cigarette.” I finished and set the guitar on the ground next to me. Everyone in the room clapped and complimented me before continuing their previous conversations.

I stood to put the guitar back on the stand and then took a drink of my whiskey when I sat back down. “So what do you think,” I asked Rob, since he was the only one who hadn’t said anything.

“I loved it. What’s the story behind it?” I was flattered that he wanted to know more about it, so I told him. We talked in our own little bubble, completely oblivious to the others, until Emma shook my shoulder to get my attention. She asked if we wanted to go to a karaoke bar with the guys and meet up with a couple of other people. I was always up for karaoke, so I agreed.

While waiting for a cab, Emma pulled me aside. Even though we’d only known each other less than a year, we were able to pick up on the other’s body language quite easily. This was no exception.

“You totally like him,” she grinned and wiggled her eyebrows at me.

“I like talking to him,” she gave me a skeptical look in response, “and looking at him.”

“We knew you would.”

“We? You and Michael? Was this all a set up?”

“Yes and no. I really did want you to see them with me because they’re great, but then after I started talking about you, he said you’d be a great match for Rob. It just kind of worked out that way.”

“Thanks for thinking of me, I guess,” I laughed and gave her a shove. I suppose if I had to be set up with anyone, it was nice that I was attracted to them both physically and mentally.

 

 

 


End file.
